Plague, Mutant, Skeleton Soldiers…
Are they all Undead creatures?!
Besides the Skeleton Soldiers, which can be confirmed from countless angles, the information on the other two is too significant.
Before this, no one, including Holy Maiden Xia Lian, had ever connected the Plague in Misha County with the term 'Undead creatures.' And while the Mutant that appeared later were often jokingly called 'zombies' or 'ghouls' by players, they clearly showed signs of life; their hearts were still beating, and their breathing hadn't stopped, which was completely different from 'Undead creatures' in the common sense. So, until now, everyone still considered those Mutant to be enraged and irrational humans.
Although it has been confirmed that their appearance is indeed related to the Plague, no one had considered the 'Undead creature' angle. As a result, even now, outside Mida City, there are still several small groups composed of Alchemists, potion masters, Priests, and scholars researching how to cure those Mutant. Several of these teams are 'official' in nature, and Sol, Tairo, and Mo Tan all strongly support them. The Paladins even specifically captured two Mutant to hand over to them for treatment experiments.
But if those Mutant are already Undead creatures and not human…
"It's useless, they definitely can't be cured." Luna was now slumped in her chair, murmuring as if in a dream, "They are already dead… Although their bodies are still alive, they can no longer be 'treated'… Mmm…"
Yu Cheng sighed softly, then pulled out a Priest's robe from her satchel (she had been carrying several sets of low-level equipment since the last God Descent incident) and placed it over Luna. Then she turned to Mo Tan and whispered, "If this is true, we should quickly let Holy Maiden know…"
"That's right, but there's still a lot we don't understand." Mo Tan shrugged, then looked helplessly at Luna, who had already started to snore softly. "Let's ask her after she wakes up. It seems this disaster in Misha County is no longer just a simple 'natural disaster.'"
Yu Cheng pursed her lips, and after a long while, she looked back at Mo Tan. "Is it… a man-made disaster after all?"
The latter nodded silently. He knew Yu Cheng had already figured it out, so he didn't offer any further explanation.
A large-scale Plague that swept across the entire county in a short period without any warning was inherently suspicious. Coupled with the fleeting appearance of multiple Skeleton Soldiers in the northern part of the infected area not long ago, and now these Mutant who don't quite conform to common sense even in the very uncommon world of Innocent World…
Combining Luna's words just now, the conclusion was already very clear.
【Although the reason is completely unclear, this disaster is definitely man-made! But…】
Mo Tan tapped the wooden table beside him, his brows furrowed in thought. Although he had crammed a lot of knowledge about Misha County during this period, he still couldn't figure out the motive and purpose of the 'culprit,' if such a person truly existed.
Whether it was the Plague that had raged until now, or those aimless Mutant who only knew how to kill, they all gave him a very 'casual' feeling.
Casually finding this land, casually spreading fear and disaster, casually clapping in the midst of countless pains and wails, unrelated to hatred, purpose, or belief, merely out of interest.
Although he didn't know why he thought so, Mo Tan just had that feeling.
【This is terrible…】
He ruffled his hair, then looked back at Luna, whom Yu Cheng had just helped onto the bed. It turned out that she, too, had groggily opened her eyes at the same time.
"Hmm, I think I accidentally fell asleep, blanket… blanket…" The girl casually pulled the nearby blanket and wrapped herself in it, then nodded at Mo Tan like a silkworm. "What else do you want to know?"
The latter gave a wry smile and shook his head. "Let's talk about the rest after you wake up."
"It's okay, I like talking." Luna yawned listlessly, then slowly sat up wrapped in her blanket, pulling out a small incense burner from her spatial magic pocket and placing it by her pillow. "It's okay to sleep a little less, hmm, how do I activate it again… I remember it was… huh…"
She poked the small incense burner for a while, and finally managed to get the thing to smoke.
Mo Tan and Yu Cheng watched curiously as wisps of light blue smoke diffused through the room. They soon felt refreshed, and a 【Awakening】 buff appeared on them, with the specific effect of restoring 1% stamina every five seconds.
Luna, who had retreated back into her blanket and leaned against the headboard, also felt refreshed, and then… she yawned blearily. "It's a small item made from awakening pollen, very useful when there's no time to sleep. So, what else do you want to know?"
"Alright, I'd like to know how you determined that this Plague and those Mutant are Undead creatures." Mo Tan wasn't pretentious, so he continued to spread his hands to the gradually waking Alchemist girl. "Also, their source, if you know or have any clues…"
Luna shook her head. "I don't know what source you're talking about, and I don't have any clues. As for determining that those diseases and monsters are Undead creatures… hmm, Alchemists should all know how… A while ago, some villagers came to me, saying they were sick. I took some blood samples and tested them briefly, and then I knew."
"Alchemists all know?" Mo Tan blinked, then looked at Yu Cheng beside him.
The latter immediately shook her head and whispered, "Impossible. At that time, in Hofur City, many Alchemists studied this Plague, but they couldn't analyze anything. However, Holy Maiden said that the highest-level ones among them were only Mid-Tier Alchemists, so maybe their strength wasn't enough?"
"But Tony said she's an Apprentice Alchemist." Mo Tan ruffled his hair, then asked Luna curiously, "Was he wrong?"
The girl shook her head, confirming slowly with her ethereal voice, "Tony wasn't lying, I am indeed an Apprentice Alchemist. Hmm, the Alchemist's Guild in Mida City assessed me as such. I came here once before… I think it was about two years ago, or three?"
"Alright, I think I understand the situation, but these aren't important." Mo Tan interrupted Luna's recollection and continued to ask, "I heard that in the village you live in, although many people were infected with the Plague, not a single person mutated into a Mutant before that attack. Did you do something?"
This question was very important, because Erbazi Village was the only known settlement where no infected person had transformed after the appearance of Mutant. This clearly didn't seem like a coincidence, and the only difference between this small village and other places was that they had Luna, this special 'Apprentice Alchemist.'
If it was indeed the work of the girl in front of him, then it meant that 'mutation' could be prevented, even if it was just a crude and unreliable prevention, it was already precious enough in the current situation.
"Are you saying 'mutation' refers to the process of those infected with the Plague turning into monsters?" Luna asked slowly, and after receiving Mo Tan's affirmative answer, she nodded. "I did provide some simple treatments for them. Although it couldn't completely dispel the diseases, it could at least have some inhibitory effect… probably…"
Although the girl in front of him seemed unreliable in both demeanor and tone, Mo Tan believed Luna's words without reservation at the first moment.
Yu Cheng, who shared the same view, asked Luna in surprise, "What should we do?"
"What to do?" Luna tilted her head, then after pondering… or perhaps spacing out for a moment, she said softly, "This Plague isn't just an ordinary disease; it also has many interesting characteristics. Some can prevent wounds from healing, some can cause the human body to rot from the inside, and some cause painful hallucinations. The symptoms manifested in each person are different, so it's very difficult to provide targeted treatment, hmm, probably…"
Luna then explained her discoveries to the two in more detail. This was a considerable challenge for Mo Tan and Yu Cheng, but the main reason wasn't that they found it difficult to understand the various technical terms Luna frequently used, as one was a doctor and the other a psychiatrist, so their comprehension in this regard was relatively strong, and there was no communication barrier. However…
Luna's dreamlike voice and unhurried tone were simply too sleep-inducing. Even though Mo Tan and Yu Cheng were in a 'sleep' state in a sense, listening to the girl speak still caused them to feel tons of drowsiness. Fortunately, the small incense burner kept smoking continuously, otherwise, the two might have suffered even more.
"An ointment made from ground colorful fresh fat and snake slough can effectively treat pustules and ulcers, but it will worsen several other diseases, such as internal limb decay." Luna hugged her small incense burner, saying airily in her ethereal voice, "The gas from dissolved narcissus stone can dispel many malignant hallucinations, but it is a fatal catalyst for several other Plague symptoms. Even adding a very strong and expensive neutralizing star crystal powder won't help, because it will catalyze magic power, and all types of diseases contain a certain amount of magic power, so it might directly lead to death. Hmm, but I don't have money to buy star crystal powder, so I can't be sure… but theoretically, that should be correct."
Yu Cheng's eyes seemed to be spinning like mosquito coils, and for the past few minutes, she had only been nodding mechanically. After Luna finished speaking, she continued to nod groggily, "Hmm… hmm… so that's how it is…"
"Alright, I think I understand." Mo Tan patted his cheeks, sighing with extreme fatigue. "In short, because the nature of this Plague is complex and simultaneously possesses multiple malignant symptoms, conventional treatment methods are simply useless, right?"
Luna nodded.
"Then the question is." Mo Tan's expression became serious, and he asked Luna in a deep voice, "Which excavator technology is the best?"
Luna was startled, her hazy light blue eyes filled with confusion. "Excavate what?"
【As expected, not a player~】
Mo Tan casually found an excuse for his previous foolishness, then shrugged and said, "Nothing. Could you tell me a little about those Mutant?"
Luna didn't continue to ask about the excavator. She just flipped through her notebook, reading as she spoke, "I haven't really studied those things much, but I've roughly figured out how they 'mutate.' The main problem is…"
"Um, excuse me~" Yu Cheng suddenly raised her small hand, yawning widely as she interrupted, "Could you simplify it a bit?"
Luna said 'Oh,' then lowered her head and flipped two pages in her notebook, saying softly, "The conclusion is that when a Plague-infected person's constitution weakens to a certain extent, their internal disease has a high probability of transforming into another form of existence every so often. Once the transformation is complete, they become Mutant."
Mo Tan and Yu Cheng exchanged glances. Luna's 'conclusion' was almost identical to their previous analysis.
The two were now certain that this girl was definitely not simple. Although they weren't very clear about the actual level of an 'Apprentice Alchemist,' this level clearly had nothing to do with Luna. She had already accomplished a 'great feat' that dozens of Mid-Tier Alchemists combined couldn't achieve.
"Miss Luna." Mo Tan exhaled softly, then looked intently at the girl on the bed, who was wrapped up like a silkworm, and asked seriously, "How exactly did you do it?"
Discovering that the essence of the Plague and the Mutant was Undead creatures, that wasn't important…
Figuring out the multiple natures and complexity of the disease, that wasn't important either…
Analyzing the reason for the infected individuals' 'mutation' in a short time, still not important…
What was important was how she controlled the epidemic and successfully managed to prevent hundreds of people in that small village from naturally turning into monsters before the Mutant attacked.
"Are you sure you want to know?" Luna, however, did not answer immediately as before. Instead, she lowered her eyes and whispered, "My method is quite special, and others cannot use it. If you hope to save most people with this, then my answer will surely disappoint you."
At this moment, there was no hint of confusion in her tone.
Mo Tan and Yu Cheng exchanged glances, then nodded simultaneously.
"Alright." Luna sighed softly, looking up at the two. The haziness in her eyes had completely faded, replaced by a calm and wisdom that completely belied her age. "You are followers of God, right?"
Mo Tan nodded slightly. "Clearly."
Yu Cheng also shrank her neck, whispering, "Yes, I am God-blessed one of Dawn Goddess."
"Swear by your God…"
"What?", "Hmm?"
"Swear that no matter what, you will keep my secret, and then I will tell you…"
Chapter 203: The End
